My son was born January 13, 2020 and I learned a lot in the first few months, and very quickly!. Pumping wasn’t what I had wanted to do nor was it how I envision my breast feeding journey going, but I am proud of what I did and surprised I stuck it out for as long as I did.
I’ve made a list of things I learned and used along the way that made things a bit easier! Hopefully this will help another new mama out!
Things that didn’t work for me but did for others:
-
The Haakaa – people really push this, I had zero use for it. Literally tried to use it to unclog a milk duct, did nothing, can’t really recommend it!
-
Manual Hand Pump – this was what i had when my son was born, we were waiting to buy an electric pump to see if we needed one first, but has this just in case. Again, I know some people this works for, for me, completely useless. My midwife told me to try pumping (I had supply issues in the beginning) even she said “this is not a pump”
We ended up renting the big Medela hospital grade pump for a while and as a result had all the Medela parts. This thing works amazingly well, and my lactation consultant said the next best thing is the Spectra. Now, they don’t ship to Canada BUT you can use a shipping forwarding service to get it up here and order it from places like Target! I LOVED the spectra and it worked so so GREAT! The features on it are perfect, very well thought out! I pumped everywhere with that thing and it maintained my supply without a baby ever latching!
Things that made pumping easier:
-
Longer tubes – these made it so I could move a little more freely while being connected to the pump and do things like cook and work.
-
Adapters – I had all the Medela parts so this was the easy answer. We wanted ones that didn’t come in contact with the milk. I did try the Spectra flanges and bottles, I just prefer that my Medela flanges come off, easier to take on and off and get your nipple centered to avoid friction.
-
Replacement Duck Bills – If you are pumping have these on hand, nothing worse than being mid pump and one of them is so gummed up with fat/milk that the pump no longer suctions. Just have extras. When you need them you need them NOW.
-
Pumping Bra – This pumping bra I LOVED, I wore it everyday like 5-10 times a day for 13 months, I really feel like I can give this a good review! I started with a medium PP, and then as I lost some weight I bought a small. It should fit tight to hold the flanges in place. I liked this one because I could put it on and off quickly and when I wasn’t pumping I could wear either no bra or a comfy one, this made me feel like a normal person and was great! Also it washes well and drys quickly which is nice!
-
Milk Storage Bags – When I finally had enough to freeze I used these. And a pro tip- put the bags on a cookie sheet and put that in the freezer, once frozen it will be FLAT and they will stack up right easier! If you have enough put a cookie sheet on top as well to sandwich it so its extra flat on both sides!
-
Bottle Sterilizer & DRYER – I know a lot of people just get that grass mat, but let me tell you, this will sterilize & DRY bottles, parts etc. If you need it can dry them in 15 minutes. This thing made my life so much easier! At the beginning we were worried about any drops of water contaminating the milk so drying them (without a towel since thats not sterile) was so important. After a few months it wasn’t a big deal but we used this until our son was about 1!
If you are struggling with supply or not, either way go follow Legendairy Milk they have a ridiculous amount of tips and honestly was the BEST source of help and information for me. I learnt a lot from their IG! Thats how we learnt Xander had a lip & tongue tie! (midwife and 2 lactation consultants didn’t catch it here when asked! Had to take him to a paediatric dentist that specializes in frenulums!)
I also took a bunch of their supplements and they helped my supply big time!
Other things that I got that helped to get my supply established:
Just a note here- it was HARD the first maybe 8 weeks, after that my supply started to pick up and by about 12 weeks I had enough of a supply that I could even freeze some! I was prescribed domperidone by my midwife (my milk hadn’t come in on day 3, didn’t come in until about day 5 or 6), you can certainly consult your physican or care giver to see if thats right for you if you are struggling with your milk supply!
-
Milk Mama Tea – I tried both brands this and the Earth Mama Organics, same thing, either works, sold at some grocery stores as well! I drank this like 4 times a day!
-
Brewer’s Yeast – If you’re going to make lactation cookies or anything like that this is a key ingredient.
-
Fennugreek – Some say this works, some say it doesn’t. It worked for me, took it every day. Once I weaned off it I kept it in the spice cupboard and cook with it.
Hopefully this helps you during your pumping journey! If you have any questions or need to chat more about things, I’m always happy to share what my experiences were!
P.s. also only available in the US but I’ve heard cool things about the Willow and Elvie for hands free, cord free, tuck them in your bra and go pumping! I never had one because they don’t hold enough milk and a few other reasons but they look really cool and convenient for the right person!
